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A fire in the early hours of this Sunday affected the fuel oil generators at the Antonio Maceo Thermoelectric Power Plant (Renté) in Santiago de Cuba, amidst the complex energy situation the country is experiencing.
According to local reports on social media, the incident began around 1:00 AM on September 21, when flames were detected in the auxiliary generation facilities that use heavy fuel oil, as reported on by the official from the Ministry of Public Health (MINSAP), Aris Arias Batalla.
Immediately, forces from fire commands 1 and 4, located in Martí and Vista Alegre, were deployed, along with water trucks from Agua Santiago, equipment from the Red Cross, and technical brigades from the Electric Union (UNE).
The main authorities of the Communist Party, the provincial government, and officials from the Ministry of the Interior (MININT) were present in the area, reflecting the magnitude of the incident.
So far, no injuries or fatalities have been reported, and according to the page on of the El Purial Popular Council in the municipality of Holguín, "there was no direct danger to the main generating plant." Nevertheless, efforts are underway to completely extinguish the flames in order to begin investigations that will determine the causes of the incident.
Background of failures in Renté
The fire broke out just hours after Unit 5 of Renté went out of service due to a leak in the furnace at 6:50 AM on Saturday, as confirmed by the UNE in its daily report.
One day prior, Unit 3 of the same power plant had also gone offline, just 11 hours after its synchronization, due to a "low vacuum" issue.
These consecutive failures leave Renté practically without the ability to provide a stable contribution to the National Electroenergy System (SEN), despite being one of the most important plants in eastern Cuba.
The situation highlights the accumulated deterioration of the facility, which has endured more than four decades of operation with incomplete maintenance and a chronic lack of spare parts.
Critical context in the SEN
The event occurs amid a deficit that usually exceeds 1,800 megawatts during peak hours, which is more than half of the national demand.
In parallel, other power plants such as Felton, Mariel, Santa Cruz, and Céspedes have units out of service due to breakdowns or maintenance, while over fifty distributed generation units are idled due to a lack of diesel, and more than 100 MW are halted due to a shortage of lubricants.
Although the authorities insist that the main Renté plant was not at risk, the fire in the fuel oil generators confirms the structural fragility of the SEN, where each breakdown or incident exacerbates the crisis and prolongs blackouts across the country.
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